Last night I was watching Modern Family. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Modern_Family_episodes
The episode had a bit about Manny (pre-teen son) who created a center piece that was ridiculous and ugly, but his mother showered him with praise and compliments on how beautiful it was, how creative he is, and how he's so good at everything. Ed O'Neill (plays the step father) asked why she makes him believe that everything he does is wonderful. He went on to say that now days kids get a badge if they cross the street. I thought isn't that the truth. The kids now are praised for everything and anything they do - they're told that they can do anything and are the best at everything. Of course you can do anything, but it requires work and you just might not be that good at it. Also, you might be the best today at whatever your forte is, but tomorrow there might be someone that's going to kick your ass at it. That's reality, that's life. Don't get me wrong, I believe in building self esteem - but how much is too much?
I personally believe that we're producing generations of self-entitled kids that think the world owes them - something needs to change.
An excess of praise may be doing kids more harm than good according to a 2006 report on education from the Brookings Institution’s Brown Center. http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2007/10/29/are-kids-getting-too-much-praise/
"Contrary to popular belief, praising children's intelligence did not give them confidence and did not make them learn better," said Carol Dweck, a professor of developmental psychology at Stanford University and author of "Mindset: The New Psychology of Success." http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/AmericanFamily/story?id=2877896&page=1#.T1jPq0ax
The episode had a bit about Manny (pre-teen son) who created a center piece that was ridiculous and ugly, but his mother showered him with praise and compliments on how beautiful it was, how creative he is, and how he's so good at everything. Ed O'Neill (plays the step father) asked why she makes him believe that everything he does is wonderful. He went on to say that now days kids get a badge if they cross the street. I thought isn't that the truth. The kids now are praised for everything and anything they do - they're told that they can do anything and are the best at everything. Of course you can do anything, but it requires work and you just might not be that good at it. Also, you might be the best today at whatever your forte is, but tomorrow there might be someone that's going to kick your ass at it. That's reality, that's life. Don't get me wrong, I believe in building self esteem - but how much is too much?
I personally believe that we're producing generations of self-entitled kids that think the world owes them - something needs to change.
An excess of praise may be doing kids more harm than good according to a 2006 report on education from the Brookings Institution’s Brown Center. http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2007/10/29/are-kids-getting-too-much-praise/
"Contrary to popular belief, praising children's intelligence did not give them confidence and did not make them learn better," said Carol Dweck, a professor of developmental psychology at Stanford University and author of "Mindset: The New Psychology of Success." http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/AmericanFamily/story?id=2877896&page=1#.T1jPq0ax
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